Meltdown festival line-up

Winners of the Mercury Prize in 2014, Edinburgh hip hop three-piece Young Fathers – Alloysious Massaquoi, Kayus Bankole and Graham ‘G’ Hastings – have continued to create a mutant blend of lush and aching post-punk, afrobeat and kitchen sink rap.

The Belgian dance music mavericks will perform new album From Dewee with a seven-piece band that includes not one, not two, but three drummers.

Signed to M.I.A.’s label, Afrikan Boy often explores his Nigerian heritage and childhood in Woolwich with frank humour. The only shock is that this 28-year-old’s breakout track ‘One Day I Went to Lidl’ is now ten years old.

It was only a year ago that French rapper Mohammed Sylla started uploading self-made videos on YouTube, often revolving around dance moves to gleeful tracks in which he raps in French and West African languages. He has since racked up hundreds of millions of views.

Fresh from collaborating with Drake, the Peckham grime star continues his renaissance. Rumours are he will bring out a slew of special guests.

This twenty-year-old Swedish rapper has already experienced the full gamut of fame – from becoming a viral sensation at 16 to a heavy personal drug addiction. He has returned with more hazy rhymes over undeniably catchy computer game beats.

The fearless, politically-minded rapper and songwriter is already proving 2017 is her year with sold out shows across London.

This date will mark the reggae singer’s first live show in the UK; his ethereal reggae tracks led the roots revival in the mid-noughties and his velour-soft voice has the ability to melt the Royal Festival Hall.

M.I.A. first approached Jamaican dancehall singer Daps to collaborate on her recent album ‘AIM’ after hearing his track ‘Shabba Madda Pot’, a jump-up celebration of Shabba Ranks’s mum’s cooking.

Toronto twosome Crystal Castles offer cool-kid lo-fi synth-pop, ranging from dreamy to ferocious. Edith Frances’ silky vocals and sexy style go a long way to make a case for the group’s electro-boom staying power.

M.I.A. approached the prodigous French electronic artist on Twitter last year, asking to collaborate. He will perform to fans and passing tourists on the Riverside Terrace.

Details are slim on exactly who will be DJing at this after-hours party in the Clore Ballroom but the hugely influential Atlanta label Awful Records are at the helm and label founder Father will perform.

Brooklyn rapper Young M.A burst onto the US hip hop scene with her balls-out debut ‘OOOUUU’ last year. Much attention has been drawn to her being openly gay but her tough, bragging, raspy delivery is what’s winning fans internationally.

Genesis, a half-Swedish, half-Tamil rapper, is a natural protégée of M.I.A. Signed to brilliant Atlanta label Awful Records, she brings a punk, feminist and overtly sexual pulse to electronic hip hop.

Outrageous, confrontational and vulnerable, Blanco is simply a huge, throbbing ball of talent. His popularity has been bubbling for some time and anyone unsure should check out 2016 track ‘Loner’.

Samson is a queer icon who found fame as one third of groundbreaking riot grrl band Le Tigre. JD will be bringing the party vibes as DJ to the Clore Ballroom.

M.I.A. will close the festival by bringing special guests on stage for one of her trademark explosive performances, that’s bound to sprint through her many hits including ‘Paper Planes’, ‘Bad Girls’ and ‘Borders’.